Oil inches higher as market weighs weak demand

Oil prices inched higher on Thursday. Moreover, the market balanced weak demand with supply disruption amid a looming rail stoppage in the United States, the world’s biggest crude consumer.

Brent crude futures edged up by 2 cents to $94.12 a barrel by 0324 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude hiked 18 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $88.66.

“The oil price has been pricing in a global recession, but even with flat global growth, the oil demand would remain quite strong relative to continued supply worries,” chief economist at ACY Securities Clifford Bennett noted.

Bennett assured the market has been focusing on the demand side of late but has probably priced too big a fall in actual demand while forgetting supply can still be somewhat problematic.

Meanwhile, expectations of further U.S. interest rate rises will continue to cloud the market and limit the rebound of oil prices, according to analysts from Haitong Futures.

For refineries, TotalEnergies SE cut production at its 238,000 barrel-per-day Port Arthur, Texas, refinery because of the planned shutdown of two sulfur recovery units on Wednesday, according to statement of sources familiar with plant operations.